Lloyiso reflects on transformation

After spending a year on a holistic transformation journey which saw him lose a lot of weight and get his mental health in check, Lloyiso, 26, is poised to make a mark on the global music landscape with performances in Paris, Berlin, Manchester and London in October after the release of his album Never Thought I Could.

“I never thought I could do the things I am doing. Never thought I could get out of the situations I found myself in, never thought I could put out music that sounds this quality, music that is true to me,” he said.

Lloyiso’s journey began when he was 16, competing on Idols SA, where he captured the hearts of many with his soulful and mellifluous voice − but it didn’t just capture the attention of supporters; big record labels also started showing interest in him.

Lloyiso found himself signing a recording deal with Ambitiouz Entertainment in 2018, but it was him singing international covers that garnered international fans, which resulted in his global recording deal with Republic Records, a subsidiary of Universal Music Group, in 2021, and saw him jet off to perform for renowned stars including at the high-profile wedding of Brooklyn Beckham and Nicola Peltz in Palm Beach, US, in 2022.

“It was a tough time because I was young. For me it started early. I needed to learn a lot of things [such as] rejection. One of the mistakes was doing things prematurely. Signing contracts, not reading them. I think a lot of artists are hungry to do that without reading the details.

“I missed a lot of things. I found myself in a 360 deal. The next thing, I am being bought out of a deal. I felt like a sheep being traded to the highest bidder and it didn’t feel good for me as an artist.”

Navigating this while juggling the pressures of fame and life marked the most challenging period of his life, Lloyiso said.

“Once you have a purpose, with great power comes great responsibility − and the responsibilities came early in my life when I couldn’t really understand them. A lot of things came to me earlier than I had the capacity or the maturity to be able to understand them, and I think now I do. It’s as if there’s specific moments that may have contributed to me feeling this way, but I think the gist of it is that.

“I have been doing this for quite some time, coming from Idols SA to being someone who does their own music. It’s been a transition from that, too. Coming as a teenager to a fully grown adult is one of the craziest things that a lot of people don’t get to experience in the music industry.”

After his contract ended with Universal, Lloyiso said he’s had no interest to sign with a major label because he wants to have full control over his music and creative process.

“This time I had a choice. I’m going to do it my own way. I don’t want to be signed to a major label; I want to do it independently. I want to make the music I want to make. I don’t want to be told what to do. So this music is me and it was rejected by Universal when I was a part of Universal. I’m glad I had a chance to get it out.

“It’s more about the control over what I make. Because I’m a producer and I write my own music, that took a toll on me because I have so many songs on my laptop. The moment I present to an A&R of a record label and they tell me this is not the sound they want to go with, that demotivated me — and I realised there’s nothing anyone can tell me that I don’t know about myself and about the music. So I stay true to who I am.

“I think that was the darkest time, which is figuring out that my voice is the loudest and everything is just chirping behind.”

His newfound independence has allowed Lloyiso to dictate his creative direction and have a new outlook on life. For the past year Lloyiso has been keeping healthy by weightlifting, running and playing rugby and tennis.

“This past year has been about staying active, in whatever motivates me that week. I’ve found it healthy. I feel much lighter − mentally, physically and emotionally.”

Now he can share with the world who he really is.

“I was in the limelight. I was making mistakes. Now I just got a grip on it. I’ve learnt about myself more and feel better in my body now. This is a transitional time where I realised all I have is me.

“I’ve been feeling this music since 2021 and I just haven’t been able to release it, so I’m happy I got to release it now. It’s pop music.” − Times